The keyboard is a set of keys that are in general pressed with the fingers of the hands to play certain musical instruments, such as the piano and the organ.
The need to shape the sides of the black keys in a non-traditional way (see FIG. 1 for example), inter alia defining a standardisable and improved measure before a non-uniform production, derives from the difficulty experienced by many pianists with a sturdy build, with large fingers or fingers that insufficiently taper at the tips, in using long fingers between the black keys, or in all piano performance is techniques in which the little finger and, above all, the thumb must use the black keys forcing the other fingers to act between the black keys.
In this sense, the inventor has conducted a survey to measure the width of the middle finger of the right hand at the centre of the nail between the root of the nail itself and fingertip, in subjects of different age, sex, build, pianists and non-pianists. The results are reported in Table below:
age(mm)Female child12 years of age13.85Man44 years of age17.53Man60 years of age18.85Woman48 years of age15.08Girl20 years of age15.78Woman45 years of age16.59Woman42 years of age15.35Woman35 years of age14.40Male child12 years of age15.32Man47 years of age16.49Man27 years of age17.70Woman42 years of age16.15Woman30 years of age15.32Man60 years of age17.27Female child13 years of age14.76Man19 years of age17.47Man36 years of age17.53Man45 years of age18.31Man23 years of age17.46Woman50 years of age14.55Man46 years of age19.91Man52 years of age19.50
The penultimate subject is an overweight pianist. All subjects except the last one are engaged in non-manual activities.
Musical instrument manufacturers currently modify the width of the white keys, in the section located between the black keys, leaving the black keys unaltered. This concurs to the reduction of the space for the fingers, especially for the Fa, Sol, La and Ti keys increasing performer discomfort.
There are in fact pianos of different brand, construction year and model, having the following measurements (expressed in mm), wherein:
A: width of the top surface of the black key;
B: width of the black key at the plane defined by the surface of the white keys;
C: width of the portion of white key between one black key and the other, fugues included.
ABCSteinway & Sons, Mod. B, 19849.7011.65min. 15.60max. 16.17Hyundai, baby grand, 198010.1112.10min. 15.63max. 17.28Scholze, upright 19709.6311.20min. 14.35max. 16.68Yamaha C3, 1995, Ivorite keys9.8511.53min. 15.52max. 17.42Yamaha C3, 198510.1011.80min. 15.78max. 17.34Yamaha clavinova, 200610.1011.80min. 15.25max. 17.15Yamaha, studio upright, 20089.4811.20min. 15.75max. 17.11Yamaha C5, 2005, Ivorite keys10.1011.55min. 15.30max. 17.42
In all keyboards in the prior art, there is a much greater distance (measure C) between the keys C sharp and D sharp.
There is therefore a need to take into consideration the increase, which is proportional to the passing of time, of the average size of a man's body, as widely recorded by evolutionary studies, and thus also of the hands of those who plays keyboard instruments.
The aim of the present invention is, therefore, to overcome the disadvantages set out above in relation to keyboards in the prior art.